Pacific Logging Congress
Live In-The-Woods Pictorial Review

This past September, one of the largest live equipment shows was back — the 97th Pacific Logging Congress. Although the PLC is held annually, it’s only every 4th year they put on a live demo.

This year was PLC’s fifth live demo and over 60 major manufacturers participated. There were approximately 125 machines in action on 86+ acres of Longview Fibre’s Nehalem Tree Farm in Clatskanie, Ore.

“Nehalem Tree Farm Manager, Craig Olson, as well as Logging Contract Supervisors, Adam DeYoung, and David Boc, did an outstanding job in the selection and prepping of the site,” says PLC executive director, Rikki Wellman.

And more than 75 PLC board members and volunteers worked diligently before, during, and after the show. Some of the volunteer positions were soggy ones. The first day it rained hard and Ed Hanscom, his daughter, and other volunteers operating the gators and monitoring the sites, were down-right drenched.

Turnout

Despite the damp weather, people still turned out for the show. PLC President Ed Hanscom felt the turn was good, even though he would have liked to see more people attend the four-day event. Total attendance for the show is around 8,000 (including education days, exhibitors, and general attendance).

Education has always been a huge part of the show and about 2,500 of the attendees (47 bus loads) were children and teachers who came to learn about logging and forestry, as well as the 80 volunteers who served as guides. “The bus transportation was paid by the Oregon Forest Resource Institute (OFRI),” says Wellman. “And OFRI’s Norie Dimeo- Ediger and Julie Woodward did an outstanding job in scheduling the schools, buses and organizing the two days for the education tours.”

A Few Highlights

Besides the weather improving Friday and Saturday, there were also a few other highlights. Air Crane — The Erickson Air Crane exhibition was a big hit. Attendees got to watch up close as an Air-Crane S64E harvested stems. The only downside was that the Air-Crane was grounded some of the time due to poor weather. But even the limited harvesting time caused lots of excitement for kids and adults alike.

Clyde/West & Ponsse — Arto Tiitinen, president and CEO of Ponsse Oyj, flew in from Brazil on Thursday, to sign an agreement with Pat McConnell, president of Clyde/West Inc. and Rick Semke, vice president. The agreement related to the retail sales and maintenance of Ponsse forest machines, harvester heads, and information systems in Oregon, Washington, and Idaho.

Ponsse’s North American President, Mikko Laurila, said the company was excited “about getting something going in the Northwest,” and then there will be more news at the Oregon Logging Conference in February.

“This agreement is Ponsse’s first retail agreement regarding the western region of the United States. The agreement covers an annual wood harvesting volume of approximately 60 million cubic meters (25.4 billion board feet), which is approximately 10 percent of the annual wood harvesting volume of 600 million cubic meters (254 billion board feet) in North America,” said Tiitinen.

Fundraiser — Friday evening, the “Loggers” Barbecue and auction, put on by Ritchie Bros., brought in $30,500 to help support the Pacific Forest Foundation education programs.

Next Year

You’ll want to register now for the 2007 Pacific Logging Congress, November 5-7. It will be held at the Westin Maui Resort on the Island of Maui. For more information, call (425) 413-2808 or visit www.pacificloggingcongress.com.

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caterpillar

Cat® machines can take you through the entire wood flow process: road building, harvesting, wood extraction, processing, loading, millyard as well as reforestation. The wide range of Cat forestry machines and attachments give loggers the power to match equipment to their production needs, site conditions and environmental requirements. During the PLC, Caterpillar demonstrated the new D-Series forest swing machines, C-Series wheel skidders, feller bunchers, forwarders and track skidders. The next time you need equipment, ask your Cat dealer to show you how they can help reduce owning and operating costs. For details visit www.forestpro.com.

logmax

Log Max engineers products that promote healthy forests and provide customers with quality harvesting and processing solutions. This year Log Max introduced the Log Max 6000. The 6000 is engineered with the same structure and durability as the 7000 but is more than 1,000 pounds lighter. The 6000 was designed for smaller carriers and operations with a focus on harvesting and thinning applications. Log Max continues to design unique harvesting and processing heads that have efficiency, serviceability, and productivity in mind. Visit www.logmax.us.

Prentice/Triad

In conjunction with Triad Machinery, Blount demonstrated a Prentice 1290T track feller buncher and a Prentice 490 skidder in a clear cutting application. With its strong lift and high swing torque, the Prentice 1290T could easily handle the tall second growth hemlock and douglas fir. The Prentice 490 skidder was equipped with an Esco swing boom. The heavy dutyaxle package on the 490 provided the stance and stability to utilize this nimble option. In select cut or final cut, this two machine package puts out the production. For details visit www.blount.com

mission insurance

We want to thank everyone for stopping by our booth at the Pacific Logging Congress Live in Woods Demostration. We specialize in Commercial Insurance Programs for Contractors and Manufactures in Ore., Wash., and Calif. Our staff of 15 Insurance Professionals know and understand your business. You can contact us at 1-800-936-9898 for a quote or second opinion for your insurance needs. Stop by and visit our booth at the Sierra Cascade Logging Conference held in February.
WE CUT TOO — INSURANCE COSTS THAT IS

woodstar

WoodStar Forestry Attachments, a newly formed company distributing and supporting WoodStar, Quadco and Keto wood harvesting attachments made its formal debut at the 2006 PLC show. WoodStar is the exclusive distributor of Keto track drive harvesting heads and Quadco disc hot saw, intermittent, processing and brush cutting attachments. The new WoodStar products include 6 roller drive dangle processing/harvesting heads and a 33” cut bar saw. WoodStar offers full support for their products and a full line of parts in their Vancouver facility. Contact your local forestry dealer for details.

rapid span

Rapid-Span, the leaders in stream crossing solutions for the forest industry, showcased their precast concrete bridge system at the 2006 PLC Show in Clatskanie, Ore. This system offers the benefits of easy, rapid installation, low profile, and low maintenance. It’s economical and robust; ideally suited for harvest roads and habitat restoration projects.

Rapid-Span offers a full line of bridge products — from superstructures to foundations — custom designed to suit our customer’s specific requirements. Visit www.rapidspan.com.

komatsu forest

Komatsu Forest Valmet site featured the 911 X3M fitted with the 370.2 head. It was an absolute showstopper demonstrating extreme-slope harvesting capability in second growth timber. Other innovations included the massive new 475FXL fellerbuncher, featuring a longer and heavier Komatsu tracks, new carbody and a robust leveling system. Valmet’s EX10 purposebuilt track harvester and the rubber-tire Valmet 941 (each fitted with a Valmet 370E head) were well suited for western harvesting. The new 890.3 forwarder and unique 890.3 clambunk forwarder proved very fast and capable as well as Komatsu’s 300LL-7 log loader fitted with a new Komatsu-made tip handling sorts.

risley

Risley Equipment offers a full line of timber harvesting and processing attachments that are designed for cut-to-length, long log, and tree length timber applications ranging from 36” to 40”diameter. Risley’s controlled head processors, Cobra and Sidewinder, process wood up to 31” dia. Their Limmit stroke delimbers process wood up to 36” dia. The harvester line includes the Rolly controlled head harvester. They offer two lines of saw head. The Rotosaw comes in both high-speed “hotsaw” and high-speed intermittent models, felling timber up to 30” diameter. Visit www.risleyequipment.com

komatsu america

Loggers attending the PLC got a chance to view Komatsu’s purpose built PC 300 LL loading and shovel logging inside the Komatsu Forest exhibit area. Komatsu’s family of purpose built forestry machines includes the PC300LL, the PC270LL, the PC220LL, and the PC 200LL size carriers. Configured as log loaders, road builders and delimber/processors, these hard working machines are designed specifically for the demanding conditions of the logging industry. With dash 7 technology, ground up guarding, and superior swing and track performance, Komatsu’s purpose-built machines deliver the productivity and reliability loggers demand. Find out more, contact www.komatsuamerica.com

CBI

Continental Biomass Industries (CBI), through a combination of state of the art design, and the latest in materials technology, with unflagging commitment to quality and customer service, has become synonymous with performance and reliability in a broad range of grinding applications. Its focus on personal attention and customization results in equipment that does exactly what’s needed when it’s needed. The CBI line extends across the full spectrum of the customer’s needs — including maximum throughput, ease of maintenance, durability, and useful life. Single source system design is no longer a pipe dream. Visit www.cbi-inc.com

pape machinery

Papé Machinery is one of the West’s largest forestry equipment suppliers. In addition to John Deere, Papé Machinery is the authorized dealer for the Hitachi, Tigercat, Air Burners, Breaker Technology, Trail King, Dynapac and Morbark. Our reputation of excellence didn’t come easy. An intense effort and a continued focus on customer service have been the cornerstone to all Papé companies, including Papé Machinery. To experience the Papé difference, call any of our locations today. Visit www.papemachinery.com

supertrak

SUPERTRAK, Inc. engineers and manufactures a complete product line of custom mulching machinery ranging from 97 to 400 hp; providing unique technologies to the vegetation management and land clearing industries since 1986. As an OEM, our tracked, excavator and rubber-tired carriers utilize Caterpillar® components to provide maximum productivity. SUPERTRAK’S custom machinery is an exceptional means to shred, mulch, and cut, brush, under story, trees, stumps, and logging scrap/slash. Our equipment is durable, reliable, and does it ALL; land clearing, fuel breaks, and urban interface fuel load reductions. Visit www.supertrak.com.

Ponsse

This year, at the Pacific Logging Congress, Ponsse North America Inc had a team consisting of a 2006 Ergo with a HN125 crane and 73 head and a 2006 Buffalo King with a K100 crane. Also joining the team for the show was a Volvo excavator with a Ponsse 750 head. The Buffalo King was bought by Lee Miller of Philomath, Oregon before the show. One exciting event that took place was the announcement of Ponsse North America Inc and Clyde/West Inc cooperation. Clyde/West Inc will cover the Pacific Northwest territory for distribution of Ponsse forest machines and maintenance services. www.ponsse.com